The Art of Romancing
by difficile
Summary: it is gentle yet dangerous, an oxymoron of rare sorts. balthier/vaan. a drabble all about kissing. fluff, some crack, lots and lots of desperately-needed balvaan.


**_A/n: Man, is it just me or is the XII fanfic list being wayyyy too overcrowded with BalPen, BalFran, and BalANYONELSEBUTVAAN fanfics. Sheesh! Time to liven this place up a little with some REAL love! ;)_**

**_Believe it or not, it's rude not to review._**

**_I don't own FFXII. Just my copy, that is gathering dust back at home where I do not reside..._**

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**The Art of Romancing**

_xlii – heart song_

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He is a master at the art of romancing, that is no question. It is not a foreign act to paint another's lips with his own, or sculpt one's bodily curves with his articulate hands. Passion is far from an unknown realm to this handsome brunette – relationships are not difficult to come by, thanks to his good looks and cunning mind on how to use them to his advantage. Without a doubt, Balthier is a strong lover who never has to question what he is doing is right.

He kisses with full, moist lips and owns a caress like no other. He knows when to change the direction of his hands on one's body, or break a kiss for a well-timed love bite or two.

With a mere grin laced with promise or a wink hinting more than meets the eye, Balthier can have the hume of his affections completely at his mercy.

The art of romancing is one Balthier can safely say he is a professional at.

For another young man, however, the case above does not apply to him by a long shot. He is a fledgling to affection and unfamiliar with the world of clemency. Affection and love, those ideas were diminished in this boy's mind long before he truly knew the depth of their meanings – and so, naturally, the art of romancing is a technique that is more than difficult to hone. Vaan, independent and dogged, never considered acts of romance until recently when, at the same time, he came across the unwanted revelation that he had no experience on such a subject.

He remembers when he was younger how sometimes late in the evening, he and Penelo would sneak out into the royal city and catch a glimpse of the night life; on more than one occasion, the two oblivious children would come across an impassioned couple kissing on the dimly-lit streets, and the two would watch wide-eyed and innocently curious on the romantic exchange. Vaan smiles at these memories, and recalls him wondering if he could ever be kissed like that, with abandon and shameless adoration.

It isn't until recently that he gained his answer, through an unexpected (and stunningly handsome) source.

Vaan stumbles across the road of romance. He is nervous and bashful, self-conscious and shy. He is inexperienced, while Balthier knows everything there is to know. Is it his innocence that attracts the sky pirate to him, that makes the brunette smile and kiss him so gently? Vaan doesn't know the answer to this; Baltheir could have anyone he wanted.

So, why him? Why an orphan cast on to the streets of Rabanastre? He knows nothing of kissing, caressing, and all these little twists and turns of this art. How he possibly won the affections of Balthier the sky pirate is beyond his own comprehension, though Vaan is miles away from complaining on such an inadvertent feat. _If only I wasn't so new at this,_ he thinks, _I wouldn't be making such a fool of myself._

But Balthier is a patient man, and it isn't long before Vaan stops kissing him with clamped-shut, clumsy lips and starts kissing with the feeling that makes his heart flutter so.

The art of romancing isn't too hard to master when one has a brilliant teacher.

--

Balthier likes to kiss Vaan in the dead of night, when darkness and tranquility furls about the pair and only the sound of their breath and lips can be heard through the silence. He likes to comb his fingers through the boy's sun-kissed locks, and caress every inch of the bronzed body that trembles under his gentle touch. But more than anything, he loves the look he receives through midnight's moonlight pouring from the shear curtain, and that barely detectable but bright glimmer to the young boy's eyes that never ceases to send a shiver down the sky pirate's spine.

Though Vaan is new to the art of romancing, he is a natural.

--

Vaan likes to kiss Balthier in the rain, when the little drops form tiny rivulets on the handsome Arcadian's face, and the way his hair feels at the mercy of heaven's tears. He likes the feeling of the water mingling with their locked lips and intertwining tongues, and the moist yet crisp air surrounding them. It is cliché, and Vaan realizes this with silent amusement – everyone seems to love kissing in the rain. He never did understand such an idea until he experienced it himself, in the arms of an irresistable brunette whose kisses take no prisoners.

--

Balthier likes to kiss Vaan by the fire, whether such an element is provided by a need of light by the camp, or if they are relaxing at an inn. He savors the warmth resonating by the reaching flames, and enjoys the way the light dances on Vaan's youthful, handsome features. Vaan is a lot like a fire, Balthier thinks, as simple as the simile sounds. For flames provide warmth and safety, like the arms and smile of the desert-child.

Yet at the same time, fire is brutal. It destroys, yet by doing so it sets the stage for birth. It is gentle yet dangerous, an oxymoron of rare sorts – just as Vaan is. Scarred and burned by the brutal past, Vaan doesn't let in matters of the heart easily. He was shunned by society as an orphan, forced to thrive on his own without the care of a loved one. It is no wonder he has such lonely, solitary strength. His heart is strong and closed-tight to prevent further emotional plagues from flooding in; this is understandable to the pirate, for he knows the feeling too. It isn't often Vaan opens his heart to others. But when he does…

It shows how big of a heart the boy truly has.

--

Vaan likes to kiss Balthier when he is asleep, deep in a realm of unconsciousness and oblivious to the burning, concentrated gaze of his adorer. It is rare that Vaan catches the sky pirate in such a state of relaxation and calm, and the blonde cherishes the dead of night where he can gaze at the older male in quiet fascination. Shirtless and barely covered by the tousled silk sheets, Balthier looks almost ethereal with the moonbeams veiling his well-toned form. Although aristocratic-in-nature while conscious, Balthier tends to loosen up in his sleep and prefers to snooze with his mouth open – thankfully he is not a snorer, or Vaan would find himself in quite a muddle.

Instead he sleeps with slightly-parted lips, a perfect target for Vaan's own soft pair. The teen, precautious about shattering this tranquil moment, always kisses him softly and tenderly, feather-light touches from one corner of the man's mouth to the other. He finds it hard to resist the urge to nip playfully at the brunette's full lower lip, but somehow finds the strength to restrain himself every time.

Balthier is beautiful when he sleeps, and Vaan enjoys the pirate's warm body and lips against his every night.

But those late night and early morning kisses? Those were Vaan's precious little secrets.

--

Balthier likes to kiss Vaan to make him shut up, though most of the time he finds every word that comes out of the boy's mouth endearing (yet frustratingly so). There are times, however, when the blonde asks such an unnecessary question, or creates the most ludicrous ideas in his head that he simply MUST voice, that Balthier has no choice but to shut him up by closing the gap between them with a kiss.

It is also, really, just an easy excuse to kiss the boy, considering that these silly situations occur many times a day.

There was one time in particular, while the party was trekking through Ozmone, when Vaan (starving, as usual) went on a rant about food, which then turned into a rant about dessert, which soon escalated to a rant about pie.

"Why is there cherry pie…and apple pie…and pumpkin pie… but there isn't like, grape pie? Or mango, or… or guava? And what about kiwi? I mean, yeah it'd taste weird but don't you think we should try— "

He didn't really have a chance to finish that suggestion to the vexed party traveling through the plains before the pirate stopped all of the blonde's coherent thought(if there was any to begin with) with an impassioned kiss.

Though Ashe was repulsed, Fran indifferent, Basch (pretending to be) nonchalant, and Penelo embarrassed, it at least shut the teen up.

…And delayed the party a good half-hour.

Oh, and that one time Vaan tried to mimic Balthier's accent for more than a tolerable amount of time…

"I say, what ever shall we do with this surplus of sundries we acquired from that ghastly hunt this morn?"

This earned a collection of assorted looks from the other five party members, most of them being baffled that Vaan could dig up such a vocabulary, while at the same time extremely amused at the well-executed imitation of his lover.

Encouraged by the lack of discouragement, Vaan merely continued while Balthier sat there at the campsite with a quirked brow and steadily-increasing grin (and pinkening cheeks).

"Bloody crumpets, I daresay I have broken a nail!" the blonde cried, though it was clear that this was all an act set up to amuse, and Balthier could only facepalm before cupping the boy's chin and silencing him with the magick of his mouth.

Yes, there are times kisses come in handy. Those memories are good examples.

--

Vaan likes to kiss Balthier when the sun rises in the morning and dapples through the trees onto the pair. It is a start of a new day, a sign of a new beginning and adventure – a sunrise is promising and brightens the earth below with warm, gentle rays. When Vaan wakes in the morning and meets the mocha eyes of the sky pirate, it makes his heart flutter to have the first thing he touches in the morning be the brunette's lips.

Ivalice usually has cool mornings, even in the deserts. To feel so refreshed and alive, side by side with the one he shamelessly adores, while watching the sun stretch its fingers across the horizon is something Vaan will always hold dear.

To kiss Balthier is like kissing the sweet lips of the sky itself, like tasting the nectar of infinity and warmth of the rising sun.

--

The art of romancing is truly perfected when one practices the art with passion that only true love can bring.

That is why Balthier and Vaan, together, make the perfect artists of the sky.


End file.
